Philadelphia City Council took the final step last week in its part of passing a citywide LGBT hate-crimes law.
On Oct. 30, Council unanimously passed the hate-crimes bill introduced by Councilmembers Blondell Reynolds Brown and Jim Kenney.
It now sits on Mayor Nutter’s desk, waiting to be signed into law.
The mayor is required to take action on the bill before the next City Council meeting on Nov. 13. He must sign, veto or not sign the bill.
Nutter’s press secretary, Mark McDonald, confirmed that the mayor will sign the bill.
“The mayor will be signing the bill. We are for it,” McDonald said. “It is just a matter of when.”
“A public signing before the next Council meeting would be difficult to do given everyone’s schedule, but it’s not out of the question,” McDonald added.
Regardless of when the signing will take place, public or internally, the bill will become law.
“We will sign this,” McDonald reiterated.
Under the legislation, offered after two gay men were attacked in Center City in September, those whose crimes are motivated by a victim’s sexual orientation, gender identity or disability — the classes not protected under the state hate-crimes law — could face a maximum of 90 days imprisonment and a fine of up to $2,000.
While some have argued that the legislation does not go far enough in punishing offenders, Kenney noted that this is the most the city can do without a state law.
“Let’s be clear. Councilwoman Reynolds Brown’s bill, which I proudly co-sponsored, gives the maximum punishment that a city in the state of Pennsylvania is allowed to administer,” he said. “We were told last year state law would preempt such a bill; otherwise we would have enacted it then. I am sympathetic to those who want even harsher penalties for hate crimes but this can only be achieved by the state legislature in Harrisburg.”
Reynolds-Brown concurred.
“Do I wish it could go further? Yes, but this bill is what we could legally achieve as a municipality,” she said. “There is no punishment or price tag that is ‘enough’ to offset the pain of victims of hate crimes, but I am proud that we discovered an injustice and took action to correct it.”
With this latest legislative gain, Kenney said he and other ally lawmakers will continue to press for societal change, to stem the need for such laws.
“Have we as a City Council pushed LGBTQ equality in Philadelphia as far as we can go without state approval? Absolutely, yes. Could we better use our mantle as public leaders to help continue to change hearts and minds? Of course,” Kenney said. “Equal rights are not the finish line, they are only the beginning of what must change.”